Robins Afb Co Op Program
Don't live off of Watson Blvd. It will take you two hours to get to work2.
Don't live anywhere off of Green St north of Watson3. If you buy, buy in Bonaire or Kathleen4. Don't live off of WatsonThere are a lot of good apartments in town, most are off of Russell Pkwy. There are some decent apartments off of Watson (see #1 above).If you have kids that are in school or plan on staying there long enough to have kids go to school, try to live in the GA 96/Mount Zion area. They just built a new middle school off of South Moody and most of Bonaire is zoned for it.
They also built a new High School that should be zoned for the same area. Don't live off of Watson Blvd. It will take you two hours to get to work2. Don't live anywhere off of Green St north of Watson3. If you buy, buy in Bonaire or Kathleen4. Don't live off of WatsonThere are a lot of good apartments in town, most are off of Russell Pkwy.
There are some decent apartments off of Watson (see #1 above).If you have kids that are in school or plan on staying there long enough to have kids go to school, try to live in the GA 96/Mount Zion area. They just built a new middle school off of South Moody and most of Bonaire is zoned for it. They also built a new High School that should be zoned for the same area.What are your reasons for recomending to buy in Bonaire or Kathleen? Even over the past couple years there has been a large amount of growth to Warner-Robins. As stated, Watson and Russell are going to be a nightmare trying to get on base.I didn't see anyone reply but the off-base base housing is okay, nothing too spectacular but it isn't bad either.
There are a few different floor plans and most are of the duplex variety with a one car garage. For example the difference between the two bedroom floor plan can be pretty varied. It is privatized, and as of a month or two ago they were taking slightly less of your full BAH per month.The surrounding areas are pretty nice places to live, but I don't recommend commuting from Macon if you meet anyone who has.
I-75 from Macon to Warner Robins goes from 55mph-65-55-70. The by-pass is much better but you are still looking around 25-40 minutes to work each way.It's crazy but I met a few Robins guys who were commuting from ATL, everyday.Oh yeah, if you live in Warner Robins you have to go to Centerville to drink booze on Sundays in the restaurants. It is basically in the southern portion of Warner Robins where the Outback is and the new Best Buy. If you are a northerner they have a sweet Kroger. It sure brought me back to growing up in Michigan when I was done in the south.EDITED for alcohol Edited May 17, 2009 by Right Seat Driver. 25 minutes from door to door from Macon.
I'm about the only one in my office that lives in Macon.224 minutes door to door from my spot in downtown Macon to my job on the south side of Robins. Actually lived in Warner Robins my first 2 yrs and had a 22 minute commute since the ENTIRE CITY commutes to Robins. Had a straight shot down 247 from Macon and rarely hit more than one stoplight. I put more miles on the car but the commute time was pretty much the same.I loved living in Macon. Lots of culture, history, awesome neighborhood and good dive bar scene. Mind you I speak only from my downtown perspective.
Robins Air Force Base Human Resources
Not too many military lived downtown but there were a few of us. A few military live in North Macon as well.
If kids are a factor stay away from the Mac unless you're going with private schools - the public ones are terrible.On Robins - The base itself kinda sucked but my unit made it worth it. They do have two great gyms, and though I'm not a golfer those who are seem to enjoy the course there.Also keep in tune with whatever big chain restaurant/store is getting ready to open on Watson or Russel, it tends to always be a big topic of conversation around there.zb. Even over the past couple years there has been a large amount of growth to Warner-Robins. As stated, Watson and Russell are going to be a nightmare trying to get on base.I didn't see anyone reply but the off-base base housing is okay, nothing too spectacular but it isn't bad either.
There are a few different floor plans and most are of the duplex variety with a one car garage. For example the difference between the two bedroom floor plan can be pretty varied.
It is privatized, and as of a month or two ago they were taking slightly less of your full BAH per month.The surrounding areas are pretty nice places to live, but I don't recommend commuting from Macon if you meet anyone who has. I-75 from Macon to Warner Robins goes from 55mph-65-55-70. The by-pass is much better but you are still looking around 25-40 minutes to work each way.It's crazy but I met a few Robins guys who were commuting from ATL, everyday.Oh yeah, if you live in Warner Robins you have to go to Centerville to drink booze on Sundays in the restaurants. It is basically in the southern portion of Warner Robins where the Outback is and the new Best Buy. If you are a northerner they have a sweet Kroger. It sure brought me back to growing up in Michigan when I was done in the south.EDITED for alcoholWhen I was stationed there I knew a MSgt who commuted from Atlanta and a Captain who commuted from Albany.
There was a female Boom there who was married to a TAC-P stationed at Ft. Benning and they lived half way between Columbus and Warner Robins. Bonaire, Bonaire, Bonaire! Some great neighborhoods right around the intersection of Sandy Run and HWY 247. Very minimal traffic coming from that direction and you can come through the Russell gate and head to the flight line via the back-way by the gym.
Also check out on HWY 96, still Bonaire and tons of great neighborhoods. Heed the advice of those above that said to stay away from Watson! Watson and Russell parkway are nightmares during work hours.Friendly reminder, Robins AFB is the largest employer in the state of GA and has some 30k people working on base, which means traffic on those 2 main roads is horrible. There is no 'back gate' as east of base is all hunting land.
Everyone is forced to come in from the west (Watson and Russell). DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, LIVE IN HUNTINGTON VILLAGE!! This is commonly (erroneously) referred to as 'off base housing'. It is managed by the same company that runs on base housing, but outside the gate is a completely different story. I have lived there for 4.5 years and watched it go from being fairly decent to an absolute SHITHOLE. Back in 08 when I moved in, it was mil-only and they ran it similarly to on-base housing. Each house cost the majority of your BAH, with a bit left over for utilities.
Well, their occupancy was only around 70% or so, so they opened it up to civilian base personnel, law enforcement, and other public employees. This still didn't get the rate where they wanted, so they opened it up to everyone, and dropped the rent. A buddy of mine (military) was living in one half of the duplex, and was paying $1200/mo for rent, and the civilian living on the other side of the same structure was paying $950.Crime has also become a MAJOR problem in the neighborhood.
Robins Afb Co Op Program In California
In another move to up their occupancy rate, they opened up one portion of the development to section 8. This attracted the usual section 8 crowd, and as a result property crime is through the roof. Just about everyone I know in there (including me) has had their vehicle broken into at least once.
I also had my 4 wheeler stolen from their RV lot. The company does everything they can do to sweep the problem under the rug, and their reply to me when I expressed concerns about security was 'sorry about your luck'.I now see it as my sworn duty to warn people to stay away from there. It used to be a good deal, but the last two years have been absolutely THE WORST living experience I have ever had. The surrounding areas are pretty nice places to live, but I don't recommend commuting from Macon if you meet anyone who has. I-75 from Macon to Warner Robins goes from 55mph-65-55-70. The by-pass is much better but you are still looking around 25-40 minutes to work each way.It's crazy but I met a few Robins guys who were commuting from ATL, everyday.Damn.I go TDY to WR AFB every now and again. Been staying in WR.
Someone suggested it would be more fun to stay in Macon (college town, and what not).Commuting from Atlanta? Damn, That's a haul everyday.
If you're looking for the grown-up life then the Bonaire recommendation is spot on. But I'll say again if it's to make the best of Robins and be near what little nightlife/dive bar scene there is then go Macon (downtown Macon or North Macon). During my Robins tour there weren't many of us in Macon but those of that were loved it. College town, walk home from bars, cut 30 mins off the Atlanta drive, had a HUGE place, etc.
22 minutes door to door commute (in honesty, add 5-10 if you're going to the JSTARS side though). The added plus was except for the only slightly longer commute (see my earlier post in this thread), I rarely had to drive around home. Downtown had most of what I needed - mind you at the time I was there all I really needed was alcohol!But if you want to buy a house and secure your future and talk investments and dividends and stuff then Bonaire is the spot. There are also lots of good house parties that go on there since a lot of people live around there too.
But you will need lots of cab cash or a friend with a pad in Macon for First Fridays.Just saying don't count Macon out unless you're dead set on buying or have kids in school. And Huntington Village is sh-t.zb. Let me just give a little 'buyer beware' advice before choosing Macon. There's a reason that not a whole lot of folks choose to live up there, even though it's relatively close. Macon is one of the most crime ridden cities in the entire nation and is certainly the worst in Georgia.
The crime statistics regarding Macon are sobering:. The most telling is that Macon has a crime index of 1, on a scale of 1-100 (100 being the safest). During my 4 year tenure, there were multiple macon nightclubs deemed off-limits by the local CC due to shootings/deaths/assaults/robberies etc.Also, calling it a college town is a stretch. There are 2 very small colleges there, Macon State and Mercer, both of which have little to zero 'campus life'. Half the people attending these colleges already work on base or are in an internship program to get on base.Visiting Macon on occasion can be great though, you have Lake Tobosofkee, the Cherry Blossom festival, Riverside Mall, and a few other hidden gems, however, living there was a risk I personally wouldnt take. Been way too long since an assignment there, but grew up near there and have immediate family in Macon.Bonaire and Kathleen/Perry are good family places.Macon has some nice pockets, but the crime is bad/growing and lots of 'just keep driving.' But some nice stuff too with Georgia peaches galore.As a singleton, Milledgeville is 30-40 minutes away with Georgia College and University (it's a long story).
Decent liberal arts school with college nightlife and trim. Lake Sinclair is there for the boater/fisherman in ya. Sure won't be much military around though. Thanks for all the insight, I'll have to have my realtor add Bonaire to list of prospective places to look. I did see one house I liked that was halfway between Warner-Robins and Macon, a couple miles NW of Middle Georgia Regional Airport; I was wondering if that area was any better for crime and traffic problems or would I still face those problems there?Thanks again for the help.Sounds like you're looking in the viscinity of Allen Rd/Hartley Bridge Rd.
This isn't terrible, but there are some rough areas out there closer to 247. The further from 247 you are, the better, but the drive gets longer.
Findings of FactRobins AFB has approximately 10,000 civilian employees, over8,000 of whom are in a bargaining unit represented by the Union'sparent organization, American Federation of Government Employees,AFL-CIO (AFGE) or its subdivision, AFGE Council 214. The number ofbargaining unit employees had been decreasing in the period betweenabout 1990 and 1996, when Robins AFB began to hire new employees.In 1998 it hired approximately one thousand new employees.The Cooperative Education Program ('co-op program') is aprogram that Robins AFB had initiated in the 1980's to obtainskilled workers.
Employees brought into the co-op program werestudents at post-secondary technical institutes in the MiddleGeorgia area. These student employees were hired on 'excepted'appointments to work for an initial 6-month rotation, to return toschool for six months, then to complete an equivalent set ofrotations until two years after their initial hire. To qualify forthe program a student employee first must have completed six monthsin the technical school. During their schooling rotations the co-opemployees were placed in a non-pay status.
While employed, theywere in the AFGE bargaining unit. Within 120 days of theirgraduation, they had either to be converted to permanent full-timejobs or separated.Co-op graduates are hired initially at the WG-3 level, arepromoted to WG-5 upon conversion to permanent status and arenormally promoted to WG-8 shortly after that. Co-op employees whohave received permanent employment have been perceived as advancingmore rapidly than some long-term career employees.Begun in the early 1980's, the co-op program wasdiscontinued after 1983 or 1984 and was revived with a 'class' of50 co-op employees in 1990. No new co-op employees were hired againfor several years, while Robins AFB was overstrength and hadstopped hiring any new employees. In 1998, Robins AFB revived theco-op program again because it perceived an absence of an adequatepool of fully qualified potential applicants available for regulartechnical positions, after it had depleted the pool as a result ofa surge of hiring in the previous year or two.
Approximately 70co-op employees had been hired from late 1998 to the date of thehearing in this case.Co-op employees are issued tool kits that ordinarily containthe same tools as those of other employees. In late 1998, becauseof the large influx of new employees (both co-op employees andothers), there was a temporary shortage of tool kits. During thatperiod some new employees were issued smaller, 'machinist type'tool boxes containing the basic hand tools. If one of these newemployees needed a tool not included in this 'machinist type' toolkit, or had not received a kit, he or she was usually able toobtain it from the tool crib. Nevertheless, employees tended toborrow tools from one another. If a tool is lost, the employee towhom it was assigned is responsible, and could be subject todiscipline or held financially responsible, but would not bedisciplined if he or she reports the loss immediately.The co-op employees are generally provided the same safetytraining, geared to the employee's job assignment, as any employeenewly assigned to the organizational units in which the co-opemployees work.
Such other employees may have had more extensiveprior experience with the kind of operation involved than the co-opemployees.Upon initial entry into the workplace, co-op employees areassigned to work with 'mechanics' who are 'qualified or certified'to perform certain tasks. Among the 'Duties and Responsibilities'on the mechanics' official job description is to '.
Instructlower grade workers' and 'render technical assistance as needed.' The mechanics demonstrate how a job should be done while performingthe task. There was evidence that, in the early 1980's, a mechanicmight spend two or three hours a day training a co-op employeeduring the co-ops' first six month work rotation. However, therewas no evidence that, in any later period, the amount of trainingtime for a mechanic, aside from performing his or her normalduties, was more than minimal or that it was different when thetrainee was a co-op employee than when the trainee was any othernewly assigned employee.The mechanics, who are also bargaining unit employees,certify the work product of lower-grade employees, including co-opemployees. Each mechanic must place his or her 'productionacceptance certification' (PAC) stamp on the part being certifiedand is thus responsible for the quality of that part.Robins AFB did not notify the Union that it was reviving theco-op program in 1998. The Union first heard about the resumptionof the program in September 1998 and filed the unfair laborpractice charge that initiated this proceeding. Union officialsfeared certain adverse impact on bargaining unit employees as aresult of the resumption of the program, including possible loss ofovertime opportunities, mandatory overtime, transfers or denial oftransfers, and potential safety hazards.Because of his experience as a co-op employee in the 1980's,Harvey Burnett, a full-time Union steward until shortly before thehearing, remembered the absence of tools for new employees,resulting in the mechanics' having to share their tools withtrainees who might lose them.
There was also concern that themechanics' 'mentoring' activities and other additionalresponsibilities attributable to the program could interfere withtheir productivity or cause them to be held responsible for thetrainees' errors. Further, the opportunities given to co-opstudents might diminish the opportunities of other lower-gradeemployees for advancement. There was no evidence, however, that thepresence of the groups of co-op employees hired since September1998 had actually created any of the feared consequences, nor, infact, had any impact on other employees that would not haveoccurred upon the hiring of more employees through the traditionalhiring process.
Discussion and ConclusionsAs a threshold matter, a conclusion that Robins AFB violatedthe Statute by refusing to bargain over the impact andimplementation of the co-op program must be premised on a findingthat its 1998 implementation of the program constituted a change inunit employees' conditions of employment. Immigrationand Naturalization Service, Houston District, Houston, Texas,50 FLRA 140, 143 (1995)( INS Houston). The General Counselhas not demonstrated that any such change occurred.The 1998 implementation of the co-op program was essentiallya reactivation of a program that Robins AFB had put into operationat least twice before. Although the circumstances leading to itsuse in the early 1980's have not been explained here, it appearsthat Robins AFB has reactivated the program whenever circumstanceswarranted it. While the record does not tell us directly whatprompted its reactivation in 1990, I find it reasonable to inferthat the reasons were similar to those obtaining in 1998, withrespect to the relationship between Robins AFB's use of the co-opprogram and its regular hiring 'off the street.' Thus, use of theprogram has followed or accompanied a surge of hiring and has beendiscontinued when the need for new hires subsided. The program wasrenewed in 1998 after Robins AFB depleted the pool of availablefully qualified applicants.While I have no doubt that the co-op program affectedconditions of employment of bargaining unit employees, this alonedoes not establish a legally cognizable change in such conditions.See INS Houston, 50 FLRA at 143-44.
Where a practicealleged to constitute a change in conditions of employment has beenput into effect previously, the Authority uses a case-by-caseanalysis to determine whether the allegedly unlawful implementationwas a change in the nature of which required bargaining or was onlythe most recent reactivation of a practice that had become part ofthe employees' conditions of employment. At 144.When engaging in this analysis, the Authority does not regard asdeterminative, 'standing alone,' whether the reactivated practicehad been maintained consistently. At n.3.I find reasonably inferable from this record a sufficientpattern of prior implementation and reactivation of the co-opprogram so as not to be persuaded that the 1998 implementationconstituted a change in conditions of employment. There has been noshowing that the circumstances of this implementation weredifferent from those surrounding earlier implementations. Nor hasit been shown that the program was implemented in 1998 in a mannerthat differed, in its effect on employees affected by the presenceof the co-op employees, from the effect of the earlierimplementations.Concerning the conditions of employment of the co-opemployees themselves, there was no change in the conditions underwhich they were hired. Thus, implementation of the program effectedno change to which they had not agreed before becoming employees inthe bargaining unit and therefore no bargaining with respect tothem was required.
Immigration and NaturalizationService, New York, New York, 52 FLRA 582, 588 (1996).Accordingly, I recommend that the Authority issue the followingOrder. ORDERThe complaint is dismissed.Issued, Washington, DC, September 2, 1999.JESSE ETELSONAdministrative LawJudge1.
While the complaint names theRespondent as shown in the above case caption, Counsel forRespondent refers to his client as Robins AFB. For convenience, Ishall do likewise in this decision.2.
These findings are based on theentire record, the briefs, my observation of the witnesses, and myevaluation of the evidence. The evidence as to actual events, asopposed to general estimates and speculations by various witnesses,is essentially undisputed.3.
The General Counselcharacterizes as an affirmative defense Robins AFB's position thatno change in conditions of employment occurred, furthercharacterizing that defense as resting on the existence of anestablished past practice of using the co-op program. I do not viewRobins AFB's reliance on the history of the co-op program as theassertion of an affirmative defense. Rather, it is the GeneralCounsel's burden to show that there was a change in conditions ofemployment. Department of Veterans Affairs, VeteransAdministration Medical Center, Veterans Canteen Service, Lexington,Kentucky, 44 FLRA 179, 187 (1992).
What Is A Co-op Program
Here, evidence presented bythe General Counsel establishes that the 1998 implementation of theco-op program was a renewal rather than a novelty. The burdenremained with the General Counsel to show that the 1998implementation nevertheless constituted what the Authority wouldrecognize as a 'change in unit employees' conditions ofemployment.' Id.4. This statement tends to reaffirmthe Authority's position that the burden to demonstrate a change isthe General Counsel's, and that thus, as noted earlier, arespondent is not required to establish, as an affirmative defense,all the elements of what the Authority would otherwise consider toconstitute an 'established past practice.'
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